MEDIA STATEMENT 29 December 2025
The families of 11 victims of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack, along with a former AFP Commissioner, have joined mounting calls for the Albanese Government to call a Commonwealth Royal Commission into antisemitism in Australia and the failures that led to the Bondi attack.
As reported in The Australian today, the families, including the relatives of 10-year-old victim Matilda, issued a powerful statement declaring: “We demand answers and solutions. We need to know why clear warning signs were ignored, how antisemitic hatred and Islamic extremism were allowed to dangerously grow unchecked, and what changes must be made to protect all Australians going forward”.
These pleas are not partisan. They are the voices of families who have paid a devastating, tragic price for government inaction and systemic failure. The least Prime Minister Albanese can do is listen to them and act. Expressions of sympathy alone are no substitute for real action and accountability.
Former AFP Commissioner Mick Keelty has also now backed a Commonwealth Royal Commission. Mr Keelty recognises that only a Commonwealth Royal Commission can comprehensively address the scourge of antisemitism and the failures that led to Bondi, stating “Bondi deserves more than procedural reassurance. It demands the highest standard of scrutiny our system can provide. That standard is a federal royal commission”.
The families and Mr Keelty agree that only a Commonwealth Royal Commission can deal with the inter-jurisdictional and inter-disciplinary issues underpinning a threat of this scale. As the families said in their statement, “You owe us answers. You owe us accountability. And you owe Australians the truth”.
The Bondi families and Mr Keelty join an ever-growing groundswell of Australians supporting a Commonwealth Royal Commission, including Jewish community leaders and members, former and current Labor MPs, former Chief Justice of the High Court, the family of Lindt Café victim Katrina Dawson, more than 170 senior barristers and judges, former Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove, the Coalition and many others across the country, with polling also indicating strong public support.
Given the breadth of voices now calling for a Royal Commission and most importantly, the voices of the victims’ families themselves, it beggars belief that the Albanese Government continues to resist a clear, common-sense and such a widely supported measure.
Prime Minister Albanese’s inexplicable resistance to a Commonwealth Royal Commission, despite such widespread and growing support, raises serious questions: what exactly is Prime Minister Albanese trying to hide? Given recent reports, is he scared of what a Royal Commission might expose about alleged antisemitism within his own party? And will he now also dismiss the pleas of victims’ families?
Such widespread support from across the political divide makes clear that this is not a partisan issue, despite Prime Minister Albanese’s claims to the contrary. The Coalition has released comprehensive draft Terms of Reference and stands ready to work constructively with the Government to act immediately.
The case for a Commonwealth Royal Commission is overwhelming. Each day the Albanese Government delays, the calls grow louder. Prime Minister Albanese must now listen to the victims, to all Australians, and urgently establish a Commonwealth Royal Commission.
[ENDS]
Media Contact: Brendan West – 0402 556 646 – Brendan.west@aph.gov.au
